Billy Graham once wrote, "Sin is the second most powerful force in the universe, for it sent Jesus to the Cross. Only one force is greater--the love of God."
What a powerful statement about the tension Easter brings to our Christian faith. A holy God required sacrifice. A loving God would not let us pay the price. God loved us so much He died for you and me. God paid the price justice required us to pay.
Going to Israel last November brought me face to face with the reality of the Passion story as we walked where Jesus walked. We went to the Garden of Gethsemane where Jesus passed the point of no return. As the disciples slept, Jesus struggled with God and his place in His plan--"O, My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will." (Matthew 26:39). If he had returned up the hill from the garden, he would have disappeared into Bethany and we would not be worshiping on this Easter Sunday. But instead Jesus prayerfully waited for the guards that would take him away and usher him through three days with no way out.
We walked the narrow streets of Jerusalem where Jesus would have dragged his cross to Golgotha. His beaten body under the heavy load of the cross would have been further strained by the crush of the crowds, the taunts of his enemies and the tears and shouts of his believers. There were no pretty pictures taken that morning in Jerusalem.
Because we sin, or more personally, I have sinned, God loved me so much that He sent his son to die to pay the price for MY SIN! The image of nailing MY SINS to the cross keeps his death personal to me. He didn't just die for Adam or those other evil people out there. He died for ME that I might know God for eternity. He did the same for YOU! Thank you God.
Again this year, as I flew from Chicago to LA on Good Friday, I watched Mel Gibson's The Passion of Christ. Once again, tears streamed down my face over and over again. He went through this abuse for us! Mary Ann Fiore also watched The Passion on Friday. She confided to me that she actually fell asleep through a couple of parts (which could have had somthing to do with her having fasted that day). All she could think about was that she was like the disciples who could not stay awake to watch as Jesus struggled with God's will working out in His life. I fear like the disciples, all to often, we as believers sleep through another Easter!
I do not know how the disciples handled the dark days between the crucifixion and His Resurrection. The dashed hopes, the memories now questioned, the fear of purpose lost, the questions about whether God had deserted them--All must have drained them. We know the end of the story. They had the opportunity and the challenge of living the Passion Story one moment at a time. They saw Jesus die, and they saw him raised from the dead. Then they had to make sense of what God had done and experience the power of the Holy Spirit in their ministry.
As I approach this Easter, I am again humbled by God's love. I know that just as I wept as I watched the movie, God wept as Jesus hung from the cross. God knows what it is like to watch His son suffer and die.
Thank you God for caring so much. Thank you for weeping with us! Thank you for sharing in our joy in the Resurrection and for making us family! May we never forget the power of Easter!
He is risen! He is risen indeed!
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